CMBA Film Passion 101 Blogathon: Hit the Deck (1955)

Young Java became a classic movie fan by watching Hit the Deck (1955) because

This movie is fun and energetic like other classic musicals, perfect for a kid to enjoy

It's slightly different from the other classic musicals that Java had seen at the time, since the characters have much to lose.

The gowns are gorgeous.

It's the movie she was watching when she first noticed patterns in different films.

Hit the Deck is an Energetic Movie

Hit the Deck is a musical, making it fun and entertaining for Young Java. Musicals were not just movies,
they were dance classes and gymnastic tutorials. Russ Tamblyn's tumbles in this film maintain a child's interest in a story otherwise filled with "grown-up problems."

Anything with Ann Miller
in it deserves closer attention. She always seems to have fun. When Ginger (Miller), the night club performer growls that she's the lady from
the bayou and she knows her way around, a kid doesn't exactly know what
she's talking about, but the chorus boys seem excited.

The unsinkable Debbie Reynolds
is practically synonymous with high energy; she was just out of
childhood herself in the early 1950s, so a kid can't help but love her
films. In Hit the Deck, she keeps up with Tamblyn in a thrilling theme park attraction which consists of treadmills, slides and people poking you with pitchforks.

Just like other classic musicals, Hit the Deck is great fun to watch and emulate. Still, what turned Java into a classic movie fan is what makes this musical different from others.

Hit the Deck is Slightly More Dramatic Than Other Naval Musicals that Java Had Seen

The family would screen earlier MGM naval musicals, like On the Town and Anchors Aweigh, before they bought Hit the Deck. The former are fun films about sailors tumbling off a ship, frolicking around in a city for a day or so, meeting someone new, then returning to the ship.

Hit the Deck is a slightly more dramatic military musical, a difference which captured Young Java's attention. We see the sailors on the job, which lends an air of reality to this fantasy. Also, the leads are dealing with pre-existing relationships of all kinds - romantic and platonic- not one night stands.

This means, during the film's crisis, they stand to lose, not a random woman's affections as in the other films, but everything they have worked for and every important relationship they have cultivated.

For the first time, Java saw a sober musical. It is more than just a picnic in the park with no real consequences. The kid took notice and she wanted to know more.

Hit the Deck Shows Military Personnel at Work, Bringing Reality to the Fantasy

Hit the Deck helped to enter that world a little bit. In the film,three men -Chief Boatswain's Mate William F. Clark (Tony Martin), Rico Ferrari (Vic Damone) and Daniel Smith (Tamblyn)- battle extreme climates, from the soggiest swamps to the iciest floes.

This was the first time that Java had seen a naval musical with actual grime and the characters expressing a bit of resentment about certain aspects of their duties. In fact, this is the first time she'd seen a naval musical presenting ANY aspect of their duties since they are forever on shore leave in movies. Life is usually all sunshine and rainbows in these films. Not in Hit the Deck.

The Gowns are Gorgeous

Musicals showcase the best dresses for movement and elegance. Sometimes, especially in the late 1940s and 1950s, that meant the ladies would wear layers and layers of underskirt. Young Java was obsessed with crinolines and the like, so this musical was just heaven!

Hit the Deck's Connection with Other Movies Became an Obsession

Java liked the people and noticed patterns of casting. She noticed that Russ Tamblyn and Jane Powell play brother and sister in this film and brother-and sister-in-law in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers.

She began to wonder which movie came first and whether they spent their entire careers playing each others relative. She then began to search for Jane Powell in Tamblyn's films and vice versa.

Knowing facts about a film became a game, a fun game she's played ever since.

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Comments:

Who knew there was so much to "Hit the Deck"? Java knew. I haven't seen it in simply ages, but I think I concentrated mostly on the dresses and how-did-Tamblyn-do-that-?. Now I want to catch up with this MGM musical and enjoy all the things it has to offer.

I really liked your choice for the blogathon, Java, because it was a bit fearless in venturing away from the usual suspects. I've only seen the movie once (friend's recommendation) but if it makes the rounds on TCM again soon I'll have to give it a second look to pick out all the things in your splendid write-up.

Well, you can't help which one you liked first. :) I would have loved to have said what triggered my film buff-ness was some great dramatic performance starring Rosalind Russell or Olivia DeHavilland or Wendy Hiller, but I wasn't really into to those kinds of films at the time. It was musicals all the way.

My love of Hit the Deck continues because though it is cotton candy fluff on one level, the relationships are pretty deep. I can never outgrow it.

Java, I think one becomes a movie buff when one starts to notice those "patterns" and seeks out new info about a film's cast and crew. I might be wrong, but believe I read where Russ was an acrobat and not a trained dancer. He was certainly acrobatic in his musicals, but also came across as a natural hoofer. By the way, your pics are outstanding, perfectly capturing the film's vivid colors. I can see why HIT THE DECK appealed to a young Java!

Yes, Russ Tamblyn was an acrobat, most notably using his skills in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, as you know.

By watching him, I figured that you didn't have to stop being energetic as an adult. His example showed me options as a child, since many of the adults in my world (bless them) were fairly sedentary and not too athletic after university. MGM was a different world.

I agree with you Java -- anything with Ann Miller deserves a closer look! Your understanding of the art of film was present at an early age. I think you inherently were born a film fan! Thanks for sharing your story!

I love Ann Miller! Always smiling and seeming to mean it. A dancing inspiration. Perfect comic timing. I just love everything about her performances.

I tried recreating her "Shakin' the Blues Away" number from Easter Parade once. It was a disaster, but so much fun because the number is just her. No chorus boys. No props. Just Ann Miller and a pair of taps. Totally arresting.

Java,I love Ann Miller but for some reason my mother doesn't care for her. How could you not love Ann? It's been so fascinating reading which films our fellow CMBArs first saw which struck a cord, caused them to develop a real love for this era.

I enjoyed your entry for Film Passion 101. Your mother loves mysteries! So does mine, but the more modern variety. She watches way more TV now than she did in my childhood and likes Columbo, Monk and those other crime scene detective shows.

I wonder if she'll like The Thin Man as your mother does. Hmmm.... I have some Christmas movie marathons to plan...

About Java

"Java's Journey: A really fun, informative well-written blog that explores all of the things - and I mean all - I love about classic films."-- Flick Chick of A Person In The Dark
Email: java-rush@hotmail.com